How To Choose Green Accommodations When You Travel
It is a thought on many of our minds today. We all want to do our best to preserve the world’s natural beauty for generations to come. Yet, finding the best “green” solutions to our lifestyle requirements can be difficult. This article aims to provide information on choosing the most eco-friendly accommodations, when work, family or fun have you on the go.
Search For It Finding a “green” hotel doesn’t have to be difficult at all. In fact, the experts are taking much of the burden off of you by providing easy to use resources for finding that ideal spot that is both accommodating and also dedicated to preserving the planet. Expedia, a leading online travel site, for instance, is incorporating a search feature that makes it possible for the user to search for hotel rooms and rentals with only the most eco-conscious companies and organizations. Whether you are looking for something rural, quiet, and quaint, or something in the hubbub of a large city, this site will not disappoint. From the extremes of man-powered generators to those that simply make efforts to reduce waste and cut down on energy and water consumption, if it is out there, Expedia has very likely found it. Furthermore, their Traveler’s Guide to Going Green also provides insightful tips on other ways to shrink your global footprint while on the road. The non-profit organization behind Expedia’s revamped “green” approach is Sustainable Travel International. The group was founded in 2002 with the intention of spreading eco-friendly practices. Specifically, the company aims to assist travelers and travel accommodations in efforts to maintain a globally responsible way of life while on the go. This group hosts lectures, distance learning, executive education, and companywide seminars that all revolve around the “green” concept.
It isn’t just Expedia and Sustainable Travel International, however, that are stepping up to help travelers and accommodations make the morally wise decisions. There are other websites that actually rank hotels and short term rentals on their eco-friendliness. Many travel related sites are now offering ranking systems based on how hotels perform by “green” standards. Do they provide lotion and shampoo in recyclable bottles? Are those beauty products eco-friendly or do they contain potentially harmful chemicals? Are the bed linens made from recycled materials? Do they have water use regulators in place to limit the water usage each day? Have they installed energy efficient heating and cooling equipment? There are many questions like this to be answered. Some hotels go above and beyond, some just do a little, but both are better than those accommodations that continue to be wasteful and to do nothing to help in such a worthy, meaningful cause.
You Know it’s Green, When it Asks you To Be You don’t have to rely on others to tell you what hotels are most likely to make efforts to preserve this planet. Some hotels are so obviously concerned with the cause that they go to serious extremes to encourage their guests to act similarly. For instance, the Elan Inn in Hangzhou, China provides gorgeous, lush accommodations, but that is not all. This hotel also offers rewards points to guests who accomplish “green” tasks during their stay. For making small efforts that make a big impact over time, guests of the hotel receive rewards points, which buy them certain services or can even be cashed in for deals on future stays. The list of meaningful acts include bringing beauty products from home rather than using the hotels, using a towel more than once, and keeping air conditioning and heating set at reasonable temperatures. More information about the system is available by speaking with the hotel, but one thing is certain; this hotel is an organization dedicated to being eco-friendly.
Don’t Pay More It seems today that being “green” is such a trend that people are forced to spend more to practice good moral behavior, but that doesn’t have to be the case when finding eco-friendly accommodations. Remember that part of being environmentally conscious is reducing energy and water consumption. These expenses are among the highest for hotel chains. Less use of each by visitors would actually be saving the organization money. In fact, for most hotels, energy costs account for more than fifteen percent of overall expenditures. When one stops to consider how many salaries must be paid to keep the large operations running smoothly, it would seem that fifteen percent is a large cut from the pie. Let’s say that a large hotel chain, prior to instituting “green” changes, spends one million dollars per year on all expenses (this figure is likely way off base, but is simply being used to make a point). If energy consumption accounts for fifteen percent of that, then the hotel chain is spending one hundred fifty thousand dollars on energy. If they could cut consumption by just ten percent, they would stand to save fifteen thousand dollars. One can see how green efforts could make good fiscal sense as well. It also stands to reason that “green” hotel rooms should not cost more than the standard rooms.